A Bump on the Head
by EphemeralDreams
Summary: Hitsugaya isn't going to budge from his little corner of selfpity until Rangiku hits him out of his misery. HitsuHina
1. A Bump on the Head

I was blocked from Fanfiction by my parents for the last month or so, but I finally found a way around my dad's blocking thing!

SO, I'M NOW BACK!

Please tell me what you think of this!

**A Bump on the Head**

"Taichou, you've been sitting there for three days…"

Rangiku Matsumoto stared at her captain's stiff form seated near the window. The glare of the sunlight prevented her from seeing the number ten written on his back, but she knew him well enough to figure out that it was him. She inched forward, one decided step at a time, until she towered over Hitsugaya Toushirou's figure. Out came her zanpakuto, and down onto his head it went. The small captain's body crumpled to the floor.

"Taichou!" shouted Rangiku as kneeled to the floor besides the now unconscious Hitsugaya.

'Crap, he didn't block me!'

Rangiku ran towards the 4th Division headquarters with the limp body of the her captain dangling dangerously from her shoulder.

> > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > >

"Well, he seems to be fine, besides lacking nourishment. After his encounter with Aizen previously, he refused stay and rest after receiving treatment, so his body wasn't quite recovered when he went back to his duties as captain. But refusing to eat…"

Hitsugaya was barely conscious, but conscious enough for him to hear the soft-voice of the 4th Division captain, Unohana Retsu, carry through the slightly open door. His head hurt. A lot. All he remembered was sitting beside his office window, staring out into Soul Society, hearing Rangiku's voice, and suddenly going blank. For some reason, he felt that Rangiku must have been some part of him blacking out and the pain on the back of his head, but all that was forgotten as he opened his eyes and looked towards his right.

Hinamori Momo reclined in the infirmary bed next to his. Her eyes closed, breathing slow and deliberate. The paleness of her skin was the only clue to her comatose state.

"Hinamori…"

It all came back. The waves of pain and guilt came back. The reason for him sitting by his desk came back. He'd promised that he'd protect her. He'd broken that promise to himself.

Aizen Sousuke, captain of the 5th Division, had betrayed them. He betrayed her. Hinamori, the one who had trusted him the most, his own vice-captain. No one had known. But there were warning signs, Hitsugaya told himself. You were just too slow to pick up on them.

He laughed bitterly to himself. He was the youngest shinigami to ever reach captain rank, and his intelligence was said to be genius. And yet, it still wasn't enough for him to be able to figure out that Aizen was a traitor until it was already too late.

Hitsugaya was convinced the Ichimaru Gin, the captain of the 3rd Division, was the power-hungry one who was fully capable to betraying Soul Society. He thought he had it all figured out. He thought that the whole execution by using the Soukyoku was part of Gin's plan to take the power of the blade for himself. He thought Gin had killed Aizen, that morning when he found Aizen's body crucified on the wall. But he had been wrong. The whole thing was a decoy. Aizen had created the illusion of his own death, and had Gin act suspiciously in order to distract the rest of Soul Society from his own true goal. Aizen then wrote a letter to Hinamori, telling her that Hitsugaya had betrayed them, forcing Hinamori to hate him. But he'd long forgiven her for that. Right now, Hitsugaya would rather have a living, well Hinamori that hated him than this cold, unfeeling body in the bed next to his.

After everything that had happened, Aizen revealed himself to Hinamori, but wounded her fatally. Hitsugaya had been too late. He figured it out too late. He arrived to see the expression of shock on her face, and the grin on Aizen's. He arrived only after she'd been hurt, and even then wasn't able to even compare to Aizen's power. Aizen's was able to defeat him in a single stroke, and he had collapsed beside Hinamori.

"I'm such a fool, you know that, Hinamori?"

But she didn't respond.

He sighed and leaned back against the pillow.

He had failed to protect the one he loved.

> > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > >

Rangiku walked back to her captain's office.

'Have to go clean up that pool of blood. Still can't believe he's still beating himself up over that though,' she thought to herself.

She looked back up at the sky. Aizen had disappeared with the Menos Grande through the expanding blue before her after throwing Soul Society into utter chaos. No one blamed Hinamori's wounds and condition on Hitsugaya but himself.

'That's what you get for always being so serious.'

Rangiku sighed. She'd have to go back later and check up on him later. Now she _really_ wished that Hinamori would wake up and somehow break Hitsugaya's silence.

> > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > >

Unohana peeked through the crack in the door, and saw Hitsugaya still glancing at Hinamori now and then from where he rested. The emotions that reflected off the young captain's face were mixed, ranging from anger, to pain, to compassion. Unohana stood up, and began to walk away, when she felt a tug on her sleeve.

"Hey, it that Hitsugaya kid still in there and awake?"

She turned her head and met the sight of the orange-haired shinigami who had broken into Soul Society and attempted to stop Aizen. The trademark scowl still rested on the face of Kurosaki Ichigo asked he waited for an answer.

"Yes, he is right in there. Do you need something?"

"Just need to have a little talk." 'And beat some sense into that idiot,' though Ichigo to himself.

"Sure, just go right in. But don't wake anyone else. I'll come back to check later." Unohana walked down the corridor and disappeared behind the corner.

Ichigo opened the door hurriedly. All Hitsugaya heard was a slam, and suddenly he found Ichigo blocking his view of Hinamori.

Hitsugaya's hand went to his zanpakuto.

"Look, I don't know you too well, but I can already tell that you're being really stupid right now," growled Ichigo.

"What do you want?" Hitsugaya demanded, hand still clutching the zanpakuto.

"Why have you been just sitting like this for the last few weeks?"

"Is there something wrong with meditating?"

"Sane people don't go meditating for days on end!"

"Sane people don't yell at people they barely know," Hitsugaya emphatically stated.

Ichigo fell silent, face fuming from his flaring temper, and looked away.

"I'm only here 'cuz I wanted to help. I kind of know what you're going through right now."

"How can you know what **I** am going through right now? You have no idea! I broke a promise I made with myself! She could have died, and it would have been my fault. Every day I'm hoping that she wakes up, but then I realize that I don't even know I can face her if she does when I can't even face myself right now…"

Hitsugaya trailed off as he turned away.

"So you do have some emotion."

Hitsugaya's head whipped back to glare at Ichigo.

Ichigo scratched his head, and looked out the window.

"You know, when I came into Soul Society, I was kinda in the same situation as you. Rukia was taken back here, and if you really think about it, it _was_ because of me. If she hadn't given me my shinigami powers that night, she wouldn't have broken any rules of Soul Society, and she wouldn't have been given the death penalty. I thought about it a lot. I felt that I owed her, and that her dying would become my fault. And that was the last thing I wanted. I came here to save her and right a wrong. All you need to do is actually move on from just blaming yourself and do something about it. Hinamori isn't going to wake up to greet a Hitsugaya who's mulling over his own guilt and stupidity. She'd want to see the Hitsugaya that she's known since childhood."

Hitsugaya didn't answer.

"Well, I'm done here. If you change for the better, then great, but if you don't I can't say I didn't try."

And with that, Ichigo swept out of the room, this time gently closing the door behind him.

> > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > >

Rukia stared at the window below her.

'Was that _really_ Ichigo talking there?'

She crept to the roof of the building and saw Ichigo's receding figure into the sunset.

'No, that couldn't have been him! I have to get him back here and get an explanation from **both** of them.'

> > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > >

Hitsugaya slid off of the bed and made his way towards the chair at the other side of the room. He grabbed it and positioned it next to Hinamori's bed.

Sitting down, he waited as he nervously knitted his brows, letting only half of his emerald orbs peek out at Hinamori who was still breathing peacefully. He slowly reached out for the small hand that hung over the side of the bed.

'Someone's holding my hand. It feels so warm…'

Hinamori had just enough to open her eyelids, but she thought better of it and kept them closed. She had a faint idea of who it might be, so just waited until she finally heard the low timbre of Hitsugaya's voice to confirm her assumption.

"I'm so sorry, Hinamori. I told you I'd always be there for you. Even after you became vice-captain of another division and I became captain of the tenth division. Aizen betrayed us, and I wasn't able to stop him. But I'll train harder. I'll get better, so that I'll be able to protect you next time. I won't fail you again. I'll always be there because I love you."

Hinamori's heart skipped a beat, and she felt her breathing quicken. She forced herself to revert back to the composed breathing she had before. She had to make sure.

But Hitsugaya now fell silent. Hinamori couldn't see but she felt a tug as Hitsugaya moved closer towards her. She could feel his breath over her face. Hinamori opened her eyes, and saw his lips beginning to close in on hers…

The door slammed open.

"That's it, Hitsugaya-taichou, you're not gonna mope around anymore, not if I can help it. This dense cycle ends right here, right…" Rangiku trailed off as the sight before her eyes fully registered in her mind. Hitsugaya was now completely red-faced and had turned away. Hinamori had sat up, and also had a beet-red face.

"Oh my…" Unohana said as she walked in on the scene.

"No, you're NOT getting away until you explain what you were talking to Hitsugaya-taichou about and why you mentioned my name. Hey, COME HERE!" yelled Rukia and she dragged Ichigo into the room by an earlobe. She scanned the scene and rested her eyes on the still shocked Hinamori.

"Oh, Hinamori-chan, your awake again!"

Hitsugaya whipped his head back at those words, only to hit his head on the bed-post. Within seconds, the captain was sprawled spread-eagle on the ground.

"Taichou!"

"Hitsugaya-san!"

"Shiro-chan!"


	2. Self Reproach

**: Self-Reproach :**

"Momo…"

The name just tumbled out of his mouth, dragging along more ragged breaths with it. She just sat there, obi slightly open, her innocence gravitating the now-passion-filled captain closer. Oh, how he had dreamed of days like this, no paperwork, no lazy Matsumoto, only him, and _his_ Hinamori, in his quarters.

Their lips connected, and he felt a satisfied shudder go through Hinamori. It seemed… so right. He allowed his hand now to venture into that hanging obi, and began to caress, all the while huskily muttering her name.

"A-A-Ano, Shiro-ch-chan…"

Did she say something? Nah. Must've been the wind. Hitsugaya continued with his concentrated mission.

"Sh-Shiro-chan…"

Wait, maybe she did say something.

He heard a gasp, and was suddenly shaken by two trembling arms.

Hitsugaya opened his eyes one by one from his dream to find his own torso hanging off the infirmary bed, and his right hand comfortably wedged between a warm pink obi and…

The captain visibly gulped.

* * *

Taichou, these papers need signing, and your desk is waiting with two weeks worth of paperwork."

"Nanao-chan, sit down and watch the cherry blossoms with me."

"No, you have a job to do."

The captain tipped his straw hat up to glance at the now-irritated vice-captain.

Ise Nanao enjoyed this part of her work day in her own odd little way. The glare of her glasses and her annoyed frown usually masked the creeping blush that threatened to burst in all its full glory onto her face.

But her captain's subconscious flirting, though enjoyable, was not working in her favor, especially today. Under the shade of the sakura tree, there was no glare, and her constant chasing of the lazy captain for past few weeks had been a bit more taxing than usual. Nanao's right hand clenched her book and stack of papers a little tighter.

"Nanao-chan, you know Hinamori-chan well, I presume?"  
"Yes, I – " Wait, since when was _her_ captain taking interest in that small, annoying girl who obsessed over that traitor Aizen and the other midget prodigy? She pushed away her flaring anger, reminding herself of the other vice-captain's previous troubles. " – do. Why do you ask?"

"I thought it may be a good idea to check on her and Hitsugaya-chan."

"And why would that be?" Yes, why did he want to check on that girl… she was definitely not his type, he needed someone more refined, someone who would keep him inline, someone like…

"Nanao-chan, your face seems a bit red."

If you asked anyone in Soul Society if they had ever seen Ise Nanao lose her cool, none would be able to answer. Her collected air was trademark, and it was just part of the person that Ise Nanao was.

But the closeness of her captain, the whisper in her ear, the feeling of his hot breath on her neck, and the thoughts that had been running through her head, they had just been too much. For the first time in her life, Ise Nanao collapsed, but just as she began to slip into unconsciousness, she felt the well-toned arms of her captain wrap around her waist to catch her.

* * *

Histugaya reluctantly tore his eyes away from the compromising location of his hand and slowly moved his gaze up Hinamori's neck to see a scarlet face and the slow beginning of tears forming in the corner of her eyes.

The captain's adam's apple bobbed as he gulped again.

In another spit second, he saw a rush and whirl of pink, and the girl before him disappeared, leaving behind only an echo of the tip-tapping of her sandals down the pristine hallway and a dazed Hitsugaya. The hand that had been enveloped in warmth just a moment before now dropped to the ground.

* * *

"More sake!"

The shinigami who were daring enough to be in the bar during training hours could only stare in wonder at Rangiku Matsumoto.

"Damn that hic Gin, leaving on his own like that. hic Just typical, not even thinkin' hic about his lover's feelings. Well, ya know what? hic I don't give a damn hic. Don't come back…"

At this point, her arm lazily knocked the pitcher of sake off the table, shattering on the ground next to a very pissed off Abarai Renji. Matsumoto had grabbed the first person she saw to go drinking with her, and Renji was definitely not happy about it. His eyebrows began twitching violently, seeing as he was still sober and Mtsumoto's rants were beginning to take their toll on his shortening temper.

"Oi, Hinamori, stop running and have a drink with us!"

Renji looked up to see that the petite girl had justturned a corner and bolting down the street, and it seemed that she was clutching her pink obi for dear life.

"Move it, you drunk, we have another job to do now."

"But Renji-kun," she whimed. "Stay and drink some more!"

She held up a broken shard from the deceased sake jug and giggled.

Renji groaned and proceede to carry Matsumoto out of the bar bridal-style. If the lighting in the bar had been a bit better, the red tinge on his cheeks would have been more noticeable, along with his deadly glare at any bystander who was watching, and a silenced Matsumoto, feigning slumber.

* * *

Hinamori pelted down the narrow streets of Soul Society, attracting glances from shinigami here and there.

'His hand… I can't believe Shiro-chan did that!'

**Inner Momo:** 'Mmmmm… neither can I…'

'…who are you?'

**Inner Momo: **'Umm, … your conscience! grin'

'Okay…"

**Inner Momo: **'You know you were dying for him to go further!'

blush

**Inner Momo:** 'See?'

'B-But something like that,…' gulp and blush

**Inner Momo:** sigh 'You're hopeless. Just remember what I've said…"

Hinamori just clutched her obi a bit tighter and ran a little faster, until she suddenly felt a hand on her shoulder.

* * *

What had he done? Hitsugaya was beyond shocked. Him and his dirty dreams…

sigh

That's what happened when you didn't age from adolescence from a copuple hundred years. Damn hormones. Life just did _not_ seem to on the captain's side for the last few months: Aizen's betrayal, Hinamori's coma, being knocked out by his own vice-captain, and now this.

But for once, this really was his fault. Everything else he had just arbitrarily blamed himself for but this was different. His body now fully reseated on the bed, he closed his eyes. Hitsugaya hated himself, and he was _not_ in a good mood. He opened his eyes again only to find a picture taped haphazardly to the table. He looked closely to see that it was one of Yachiru's drawings, crayon scratchings that looked suspiciously like a white-haired captain, and a bed-wetting vice-captain, with an annoying smiling sun overhead. If Hitsugaya had his zanpakutou, that smiling sun would have been frozen and slashed to pieces. If only he had his sword…A flurry of pink rushed by, and by the time Hitsugaya had turned his head, he found, with disappointment, Ise Nanao tucked away in the bed next to his, and the flamboyant Shinsui sitting in a chair, brows furrowed in worry. Unohana soon slowly entered the room with a slow gait.

A flurry of pink rushed by, and by the time Hitsugaya had turned his head, he found, with disappointment, Ise Nanao tucked away in the bed next to his, and the flamboyant Shinsui sitting in a chair, brows furrowed in worry. Unohana soon slowly entered the room with a slow gait.

"Unohana-taichou, she just suddenly collapsed," gushed the captain with an energy that seemed uncharacteristic to him.

Unohana just smiled knowingly and replied, "I'll take a look."

* * *

"What are you doing?" asked Renji gruffly.

"N-Nothing, Abarai-kun," Hinamori meekly returned, mentally cursing her flowing tears and her stutter.

Renji sighed and set down a "snoring" Matsumoto on the ground, carefully propping her head against a wall. Unnoticed by anyone, Matsumoto opened one eyelid slightly to survey the scene.

Hinamori gasped, "What happened to her?"

"Ignore it, just been drinking. You still haven't answered my question." Renji had stood straight up now, not having the other shinigami in his arms, and in effect he was towering over her. Hinamori cowered, and, glancing to the side, noticed that Matsumoto was no longer against the wall.

"Hi-na-mo-ri-chan!"

Matsumoto shamelessly glomped the small girl, as a vein popped on Renji's forehead.

"So, how was my captain doing?"

Hinamori's face turned beet-red.

"Ohoho, what did you two do?"

gulp

"Oh, c'mon, tell me." Matsumoto pouted. (A/N: She is still drunk. Very drunk. Extremely drunk. Did I mention that she was drunk?) Another vein popped on Renji's forehead, as he stood off to the side.

"H-He, ano, he f-fon-fondled m-my – "

"He WHAT?"

A murderous aura appeared, and Renji's form was already in a ready attack position, and would have been gone already if Matsumoto had not tugged at his robe.

"But, h-he was asleep…"

Matsumoto pulled harder on Renji's robe to restrain him.

"Hinamori-chan, since it seems Hitsugaya-_taichou_ is more than ready, it seems, it's time for me to teach you the basics of men." She gave Renji a sickeningly saccharine smile.

"What the HELL are you planning?"

* * *

"Are you sure it's only overwork?"

"Yes, I am quite sure," The captain reassured for the fifth time. "It seems that she hasn't been sleeping well at all recently."

She watched as Shinsui gingerly removed the pile of papers and the books that were still in the vice grip of the unconscious vice-captain.

"Do you have a pen on you anywhere?" (A/N: Do the shinigami in Soul Society use pens? Or quills, since that seems a bit more fitting…?)

Hitsugaya smirked amusedly.

* * *

Renji was now the one leaning against the wall, eyes open, and completely unresponsive to any attempts to gain his attention. Hinamori stood a slight distance away, nervousness and utter embarrassment showing on her face: the color matched nicely with her obi.

"You know what to do now?" Matsumoto slurred.

Hinamori timidly nodded and scampered off.

Matsumoto giggle before finally succumbing to the effects of alcohol and slumping to the ground, snoring loudly.

Renji had no idea whether the things that had transpired in the last ten minutes should be considered as a treasured memory, or as a blackened mar in his mind. All he knew was that he would **never** forget it.

* * *

Hitsugaya slumped back in his bed. Shinsui had just left for his desk, for once,having finished the portion of paperwork that Nanao was carrying.

Nothing was ailing him anymore, except for a plaguing guilt. He had long since recovered from physical injury, and the massive swelling on his head was now reduced to just a small bruise. Though Unohana had told him not to move, he had an impatient desire to go outside and walk somewhere to relieve his aching thoughts.

Hitsugaya carefully slipped his sheets off and quietly put his sandals on. Unfortunately for him, Nanao was not the snoring type,making his stealth job more complicated than it already was. He tiptoed to the door, opened it, and prepared to make a mad dash for an exit –

A soft thud was heard, and Hitsugaya toppled back onto the ground. He groaned, and attempted to get up until he realized two arms had locked him in his position.

deep breath

"Shiro-chan," Hinamori tried, as seductively as her mind could muster, only to sound almost desperate and slightly angry. She mentally cursed herself for the second time that day.

"I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean to, I was just dre – I mean, I wasn't conscious of what I was doing. I'd never try to do something like that without your consent first – I mean, I won't do it again…"

A one-month-long coma. Check. Waking up to find you stupid crush trying to kiss you. Check. Getting interrupted, and not seeing it through. Check. Seduction methods failed. Check. Crush is stuck in an advantageous position. Check. Absolute frustration at his inability to do something consciously. Check.

Taking her the advice of her "conscience", Hinamori closed her eyes and leaned in, and silence followed.

Shinsui sighed. He had never been truly sober enough to actually see how much paperwork had been building up. The fact that he hadn't enetered his office for weeks probably didn't help much either.

Five hours of signing, reading, and writing drained his energy and most of his sake. Finally finished with most of the pile blocking his office's entrance, he had decided to check on Nanao, and to grab a few more sake bottles from the bar.

Said sake bottles in hand now, he stepped into the darkened infirmary room, and navigated his way to the bed on the right, with its sheets slowly rising and falling with each of Nanao's breaths.

He glanced over at the bed that had been previously occupied, now empty, the sheet with faint evidence of wrinkles, and taped to the side, a crayon picture highlighted by the moonlight.

**fin**

A/N: O.O I actually did it!!! cry You have no idea how many hours during my internship I just sat there in that depressing pediatrician's office, trying to write this little chapter. SO HAPPY!!!

Anyhow, thank all the people who reviewed for this chapter, because otherwise, I would have never written it.

I have just edited a lot of the errors in this...


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